Meet Shinya Kimura, one of the most sought-after motorcycle customizers in the world. From making, from feeling. Without sketches or drawings, blueprints or models, that’s passion and our Inspiration Friday: Industrial Creativity story this week. Read about the new BMW R18 The Wal, from rivet to rubber on Total Motorcycle. Breath in the Japanese inspiration from the center of Tokyo with all its heavy smells of oil and cold steel plus the constant hammering of the machines.
A true hands-on BMW Sports Endurancer. Be inspired, let the creativity flow.
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Fuel tanks and jerseys, helmets and tools, calligraphy and photography: the workshop – or rather the wonderful and orderly chaos – of Shinya Kimura, one of the most sought-after customizers in the world (and one of the most interesting ones!), is packed with mementos and astonishing items of all kinds. No more than two or three motorcycles leave his holy halls each year. During his modification projects, he focuses on only one bike at a time to be fully invested in the project. The flow and harmony as well as the Wabi-Sabi of Japanese aesthetics play a crucial role in this. The patina and the genuine character of the – mostly – old motorcycles are just as important to him as the essence of the future rider. After all, it’s the rider who completes the project. So it’s all the more exciting that this time Shinya has a brand-new R 18 in his workshop and the rider concerned is no less than he himself.
My approach comes from making, from feeling. Without sketches or drawings, blueprints or models. ”
Shinya Kimura, Chabott Engineering
Where does this feeling come from that Shinya works with? He gained experience at his parents’ rivet factory in the center of Tokyo with all its heavy smells of oil and cold steel plus the constant hammering of the machines. All this shaped his subconscious mind and modeled his first workshop concepts. His father was a poet and his mother had mastered the art of calligraphy. Consequently, Shinya also seems to have an aesthetic sensitivity ever since the day he was born. As a result, he carefully studies the heritage, roots and character of every bike he modifies, paying attention to every detail. With the R 18, this is undoubtedly a lot to handle. Shinya recognized this very quickly.
Seeing the big boxer engine with his own eyes quickly made him realize that this was the largest engine he had worked on to date. However, the initial feeling of respect vanished after a very short time. The way it handled reminded Shinya of the many motorcycles with boxer engines that he had owned in his life, especially the R 69 S. He was quickly impressed by how easy the R 18 was to handle and the feedback it gave him. However, the first time he twisted the throttle, he felt a completely new boxer engine experience as the unbridled power of the 1,800 cc unfolded. Shinya felt like a man possessed by an almost unspoilt riding pleasure, making it hard for him to get off the bike. While riding, he distinctly felt that “it was not chaotic, unhinged power – but full of sovereignty and elegance. Something that only BMW can do.” He quickly established a name for the modification project: “The Wal” – a combination of unadulterated power and dynamic grace.
And consequently the motorcycle’s focus was also quickly established: “The Wal” had to match Shinya and his way of riding. He called his specification the “Sports Endurancer”. A stretched, dynamic seating position and a range of trims were essential to satisfy the lust for long trips on the big boxer that had just developed. During the modification Shinya was particularly happy with one thing: basis of his feelings and demands without changing the bike’s impressive handling and riding experience even in the slightest. Consequently, the R 18 even managed to surprise the master of the wonderful and orderly chaos.
Unique, different and yet completely BMW R 18 – that’s “The Wal”, the latest creation by Japanese customizer Shinya Kimura.
Munich. Unique, different and yet completely BMW R 18 – that’s “The Wal”, the latest creation by Japanese customizer Shinya Kimura. After Roland Sands and Dirk Oehlerking, Kimura is the third customizer to transform the R 18 into an extraordinary unique specimen for the “SoulFuel” series. “SoulFuel” is a collaboration between BMW Motorrad and selected customizers.
Until recently, Shinya Kimura worked mainly on older motorcycles, but the Japanese customizer is increasingly also devoting himself to projects involving modern bikes.
“The Wal” is one of them. “The basis is the R 18, powered by the latest and greatest engine I have ever worked on. It all started with a visit to the BMW Motorrad R 18 development team in Germany. I got to know the unbounded passion and innovative power that prevails at BMW Motorrad. Finally, in February 2021 in California, I rode the standard R 18 for a few hundred kilometres to get to know the character of the bike. Following a whole series of conversations, this eventually led to my personal interpretation of the R 18, in which I applied the entire range of my activities as a customizer,” says Shinya Kimura, recounting the initial phase of “The Wal” project.
Kimura then began work in mid-February and “The Wal” was already built up by the end of June. “But there were still some mechanical problems that kept me busy for another two weeks,” Kimura continues.
Kimura’s motorcycles are created exclusively “hands-on”
Shinya Kimura’s craftsmanship can be aptly described by the term “hands-on”, as there are no sketches, drawings, blueprints or mock-ups during the building process. But there is a precise idea of what the customer, or in this case the customizer, wants.
“I built the R 18 entirely for myself. When I rode the production R 18, I thought it might suit my build and riding preferences better if I designed it to be a little more front-facing with a fairing. I decided to adopt the frame, wheels and tyres as well as suspension elements and brakes because I didn’t feel the need to change them after I had ridden the bike. I also wanted to be able to ride for long distances with my R 18 while feeling and enjoying the legendary boxer engine. It was very important to me to preserve the two characters of the R 18 as I experienced them when riding. Thanks to its mighty engine, the bike is wild and has almost inexhaustible power on the one hand, yet it is completely good-natured on the other. Just like a whale, hence the German animal name for this R 18, which for me is something like a “Sports Endurancer”,” Kimura explains.
The “Sports Endurancer” is unmistakably evident in Kimura’s R 18 “The Wal”. This is ensured by a larger and, completely differently designed fuel tank compared to the original, an elongated, harmoniously rounded seat hump and a half-shell fairing.
“I also moved the foot rests back about two inches to have more flexibility for positioning the legs. At the same time, I lowered the handlebars and changed the seat to my liking. The seat cushion was also designed by me and then handmade by BACKDROP Leathers in Japan. It all added up to the very natural posture that I like,” Kimura continues.
The semi-shell fairing houses two asymmetrically arranged headlights that almost look like eyes and, with a little imagination, actually give Kimura’s R 18 the appearance of a whale together with a “set of teeth” incorporated underneath. The colour scheme and the coarsely textured paintwork also match the theme of “The Wal”. In short: “The Wal” R 18 is an “animal” of a bike. Powerful, mighty, but always good-natured.
“What I like best about my version of the R 18 is that I was able to change the style and seating position to my liking without destroying the excellent original functionality of the R 18. But drastically changing the seating position and adding my own style and taste was a big challenge in my interpretation of the BMW Heritage. Besides, all these computerised systems and wiring were quite new to me and I learned a lot,” says Kimura, pleased with the result of his work.
Hard facts about the R 18 customising project “The Wal”:
Handlebars: 8 inches narrower, 6 inches lower.
Fuel tank: Made longer to move the seating position rearward and gain additional fuel capacity of about 1 gallon for longer trips.
Seat pad designed by Kimura himself, handmade by BACKDROP Leathers in Japan in bucket style for more bottom support.
Seat designed so that it creates a natural flow from the seat cushion and leads to the round rear light.
Semi-shell fairing for comfortable handling at high speed.
The side covers have been designed in such a way that they do not destroy the look of the original frame.
Special paint finish in the form of a bronze powder coating, after the components have previously been hammered to give the surface texture.
After Kimura had completed all the bodywork, he decided to keep the classic symbolic shape of the standard exhaust system, but paint it black.
The King of Customizing: Shinya Kimura.
Born and raised in a family that ran a small rivet factory in downtown Tokyo, Shinya Kimura was always surrounded by the smell of steel and oil and the sound of machinery and metals. Perhaps that’s why, after studying entomology, Kimura decided to return to what felt most natural to him: tinkering in his workshop and building things from different metals.
Kimura, the father of the so-called “Zero Style” motorbike, began his career as a customizer in Japan at Zero Engineering, a company he founded in 1992. He rose to international fame as early as the 1990s, when his custom Harley-Davidson “Samurai Chopper” was created. It followed his characteristic wabi-sabi influenced style.
In search of new inspiration, Kimura later moved to Azusa, California, where he founded his own independent company, Chabott Engineering, in 2006. Today, the sought-after customizer only makes a handful of motorcycles a year – exclusively for customers with whom he feels a mutual understanding and no time pressure. The great passion that drives him: “Passion for all the motorbikes that were born into this world”, as he says himself. While working on “The Wal” project, he discovered new things every day that stimulated and motivated him. Looking back, he says: “I greatly appreciate BMW Motorrad and all the people who supported me in this project. It was such a valuable and impactful experience for me.”
